Need to find a nursing school near Newport News

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Hi, we are a military family and will be relocated next July. Unfortunately, we have been given 16 different states as potential residences.

Can someone point me in the right direction of an accredited college with a nursing program? I would like to stay the community college route but, am open to looking into a University. I currently live in Oregon and have completed all of their required pre-requisites for the local community colleges. However, all states are different and I am struggling to complete this vast amount of research in order to use the upcoming fall term as effectively as possible. If you are familiar with this area and could provide me with some local schools and a link to their nursing program I would greatly appreciate it.

Riverside School of Health Careers http://www.riversideonline.com/rshc/
is fully accredited and has been operating since 1916. Its a diploma program but many of its students finish up with a BSN via ODU in Norfolk after graduation. I'm in my second term there at nights and really like the program.

The other programs in the area are either associated with a community college or a 4 year college with the exception of Sentara's program which is hospital based and has transitioned over to a BSN (still not fully accredited yet as BSN). You have TNCC on the peninsula, TCC is in Portsmouth, Sentara is over in Chesapeake. 4 year schools include ODU that has a BSN as does Norfolk State and Hampton U. I do believe MCI also has a program though I am not sure where. They advertise it as a 2.5 year BSN program which means you come in with 1.5 years of pre-reqs and finish up in 2.5, same as Sentara.

The one other factor is tuition. The CC route usually is cheapest, probably at about 100 bucks a credit. But all the CC programs are wait listed. I think the 4 year programs are also wait listed or they make you take so many credits before you can get in and they look at your current gpa real close. Riverside does not have a wait list, cost for the whole program is about 20 grand for the 2 year day or 3 year nights. You would have to come in with the following pre-reqs:

High School or College Chemistry

Required College Courses

Anatomy & Physiology with Lab: 5-8 semester hours

Microbiology with Lab: 4 semester hours

English Composition: 3 semester hours

General or Introductory Psychology: 3 semester hours

Developmental Psychology: 3 semester hours

General Sociology: 3 semester hours

College Math (100-level or higher): 3 semester hours

Hope this helps, PM me if you need more info. We have a couple of active duty folks in our current class btw.

Thank you for all the great information. So you say they (Riverside) have no waiting list. How do they determine who gets in aside from the pre-reqs? Is there a point system that they evaluate the grades of your pre-reqs on?

As long as you have all the pre-reqs, pass the TEAS test and successfully complete the application and interview, then its a matter of how many applicants they have for the slots available. They require a C or better on all courses and the key ones (a&p and micro) need to be completed within the last 7 years. The RN program is getting a bit larger this coming semester, I have heard 35 mentioned as the number of new students in the day division coming in Jan. Up to this point they haven't excluded anybody yet in RN, I think they may in some of the other programs though. Really it comes down to money, the local CC's are quite a bit cheaper per credit but they do have a wait. Compared to the for profit schools like MCI, we are quite a bit cheaper, and are about on par with the 4 year schools cost per credit.

I will be starting the RN program at MCI in Newport News this January if accepted to the program. I have all my pre-reqs except for Chemistry which I start tomorrow. I am really happy with the school and I have heard good things about it while volunteering at the VA Medical Center in Hampton. The school is extremely expensive, $38,000 for the whole program but this includes books, tuition, and medical equipment; but I have the GI Bill so I do not have to cover much of it, only everything after 13 months because that is all I have left of my GI Bill. The program is 15 months long and I have transferred in some of my credits from my Bachelors in Management.

The school is extremely high paced with 5 week classes. I will not be working while in school so that I can dedicate myself 100% to my studies. I also have no kids and a great husband so I am not worried about succeeding. I looked into TNCC and Riverside but I think MCI is the best fit for my situation.

There are tons of RN jobs in this area as we have a lot of hospitals, doctors offices, inpatient centers, government and military facilities (Which being a military family you should get hiring preference), etc.

I am really excited about starting, it has taken me 8 years to find something I love doing. If you have no medical experience I highly recommend shadowing/volunteering at a hospital. This was the only reason I discover x-ray technologist was not for me and that nursing is.